


Perfectly Wild

by EmeraldandSilver



Category: Yuri!!! on Ice (Anime)
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Alternate Universe - Magic, Anxiety, Aromantic, Asexual Character, Bisexual Character, Coming Out, Fluff and Angst, Flying, Gay Male Character, M/M, Panic Attacks, Werewolves, Wizards
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-03
Updated: 2017-09-03
Packaged: 2018-12-23 08:40:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 9
Words: 18,097
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11986242
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/EmeraldandSilver/pseuds/EmeraldandSilver
Summary: Yuri Plisetsky just wants to survive exams during his second year at Allegro High School of the Magical Arts, but while collecting ingredients for a potion, he gets bitten by a werewolf. His already wonky wizard powers grow weaker as he discovers new werewolf skills. When he accidentally sets off a magical bomb, his life takes an unexpected turn. It doesn't help that he finds himself inexplicably drawn to Jean-Jacques Leroy, the most popular werewolf at school. They are opposites in every way, and yet it has never been truer that opposites attract...





	1. Chapter 1

Werewolves are evil. They are wild, wily, and totally out of their minds. The worst mistake a wizard could make would be trusting a werewolf, calling a werewolf friend or lover, inviting a werewolf into one’s life. It is a death sentence. Because werewolves are wild. They are unpredictable. When they turn, all they want is blood—blood, blood, and more blood—and they don’t care whose it is. Because once a werewolf turns into a wolf, every living thing becomes prey. Never trust a predator.

- _The Wizard’s Guide to Werewolves_ by Tomas Ackernoff, Introduction

 

The fumes in the potion lab make it hard for Yuri to breathe. He stares dizzily into the color changing potion that is supposed to turn his lizard bright blue. The colors swirl around, but no matter how many rat tails he adds, the color stays a disgusting gray, like clouds above a stormy day. Yuri’s mind wanders: faint memories of his parents from his childhood. His mother was always good at potions, and his father was talented at spellcasting, but Yuri inherited neither ability. Out of all the students in Allegro High School of the Magical Arts, Yuri Plisetsky is without a doubt the worst wizard.

He glances to his left at Kenjiro Minami with his blond hair streaked with red and his rosy cheeks. He’s the only nice werewolf Yuri has ever met. Yuri isn’t stupid enough to become his friend, but he stays amiable enough to ask Minami for potions advice. Without looking at Minami, he taps his arm.

“What is it?” the boy whispers.

“How do I make it blue?” Yuri stirs the potion, turning over a green leaf in the cauldron. Everything should have dissolved once he added the pond slime, but ingredients still float in its murky grey depths.

“Did you recite the spell?”

Resting the spoon on the table, Yuri looks down at his book and thumbs through the pages. There is no spell listed for his potion, though there definitely should be. The page has been ripped near the bottom. He remembers lunch yesterday, how he’d left his bookbag in the library and returned minutes later, worried that it would be empty, only to find all the contents still there. He’d been too relieved to pay attention to the fourth-year werewolves in the corner, the worst kind of werewolves, who’d been snickering at him.

A practical joke. That would be his demise. “Can I borrow your book?” he whispers to Minami, hoping that it isn’t too late to recite the spell. Minami passes the book over and Yuri studies the words, committing them to memory. He passes it back to Minami before Professor Georgi can notice. Quietly, he recites the words while stirring the potion three times clockwise and four times counter-clockwise.

Yuri leans over the cauldron to see if the color has changed at all. It looks the same. And that’s when the smell hits him. Vile and cruel, like acid burning through his nostrils. He topples backwards over his stool and lands on his bottom. His elbows hit the ground, narrowly saving him from a concussion.

“Plisetsky. What happened?” Professor Georgi’s voice. It sounds faint in the dim room. Yuri can barely keep his eyes open; the people surrounding him seem to be swimming in waves. A blot of red tells him that Mila is kneeling down beside him. He reaches for her hand, and she clasps his tightly, her touch comforting and warm.

Minami is saying a lot of words, though Yuri can’t make sense of any of them. The boy talks too much as it is. Georgi has walked over to his potion and is pouring some onto the lizard. A loud shriek sounds and then only silence.

The lizard is dead. Yuri knows it. He’s made a fucking death potion and didn’t even mean to. This will be it, the end of his wizarding career. He’ll never make it to wizard college, never find a normal job. He’ll have to work with the non-magical people for the rest of his life. Maybe they’ll make him forget that he’s a wizard. That would be kinder, surely.

A few minutes later Yuri can breathe again. The horrid smell is gone, the lizard has been taken away, probably flushed down the toilet, and his uncle Viktor is stroking his forehead gently. A panic attack, Yuri realizes. The world won’t end if he fails his potion’s exam tomorrow. He’ll have to start over on the potion, but he can do that. He has time. Everything will be okay.

Viktor smiles at him, running his thumb across Yuri’s cheek. “There’s a good boy,” he says.

The classroom is empty aside from them. Third bell must have rung, lunch bell. Georgi had obviously summoned his uncle Viktor, who taught Wizard Magic at the school. Yuri is relieved to see him, just his presence reassures him that everything is okay. There’s no need to panic. Viktor will protect him.

Ever since his parents died, Yuri has relied on his uncle to fill the void they left behind. As his legal guardian, Viktor provides for Yuri and pays his tuition at the school. He’s grateful to him, and he knows he’ll never be able to show just how much.

“I’m okay,” he says because he doesn’t like Viktor to worry about him.

“I brought you something,” Viktor says and pulls a package from his jacket pocket. He unwraps the silky ribbon and the handkerchief unfurls to reveal a couple of powdered donuts. “Smuggled them from the kitchens.” He winks.

Yuri eagerly takes them and starts tearing into the first one. They’re still warm despite the coldness of the classroom. Each bite feels like medicine, the soft pillowy texture and rejuvenating sugar a welcome distraction. He no longer feels anxious or scared.

“So tell me about your potion,” Viktor says casually. He’s not angry or anything, but he probably wants to help fix it.

Around a mouthful of donut Yuri says, “Asshole werewolves tore out the incantation.”

“Jean-Jacques Leroy again?”

Yuri frowns and picks at the second donut, getting powdered sugar all over his fingers. “Yeah. He was in the library with, uh, Emil and Michele. I think he only does it when Leo’s not around.”

Viktor nods in understanding. “That kid needs a wake-up spell.”

“Tell me about it,” Yuri mutters, licking the sugar from his fingers. Jean-Jacques Leroy, better known as JJ, is the son of the Magic Council’s leader. Aside from making perfect grades and being too handsome for his own good, he takes fun in teasing the school’s worst student. His best friend Leo de la Iglesia, however, has two police officers for parents. JJ is always on his best behavior when Leo is around.

“Come on. I’ll help you collect the ingredients to start over.” Viktor pats Yuri’s knee and stands up.

Yuri folds the donut into the handkerchief and shoves it into his pocket, then follows Viktor to the supply cabinet. He’s memorized the ingredients—one of his few talents is a photographic memory. Everything is there…except the moonflower.

“Is that all of it?” Viktor asks. He’s being kind, but it’s clear that he has somewhere he needs to go, as he keeps glancing at the clock.

“Yes,” Yuri lies. “Thank you, Uncle Viktor. I’ll see you later.”

Viktor nods and heads out of the classroom. He’s always so busy with grading papers and such. Mila insists he must have a secret lover, but Yuri doesn’t want to believe it. Viktor would tell him if he were dating someone, he’s sure of it.

Yuri turns his attention back to the supply cabinet. No moonflower. And it’s not an ingredient that can be substituted. The only way to get more moonflower would be to sneak into the forest and collect it in the light of the full moon. His only chance is tomorrow night. He can sneak out to get the moonflower and no one will be the wiser.

It’s a good plan, he thinks. Better than many others he’s had over his two years at Allegro.

 

He heads out to the forest while it’s still light. All exits and entrances to the school close at nightfall, so he’ll likely be stuck outside until Yakov slips out for a smoke break around midnight. He doesn’t mind. It’s not the first time he’s wandered the forest. Mila is his only real friend and lately she’s been focused on this fourth-year student, Otabek Altin. He’s basically the wizard equivalent of JJ. Everybody likes him—except Yuri. So whenever Mila gets her flirt on, Yuri becomes desperate to get away.

The forest calms him; the way the wind curls through the trees, the rustle of leaves from scampering animals, the trickle of water in the stream. Unlike potions, the forest smells natural and comfortable. Yuri wonders how the very ingredients from the forest can become so distorted when combined. Or maybe it’s the magic incantation that twists them into new shapes and smells.

Werewolves and wizards both have magic, but they work differently. Wizard potions always smell like chemicals—or something gone horribly wrong. Werewolf potions retain the smell of nature. Yuri wonders how they do it. They’re the dangerous ones. Is that why their magic smells so inviting? Like a venus fly trap trying to lure its prey.

Yuri climbs into the lower branches of his favorite elm tree to wait for darkness to fall. Moonflower only blooms in the light of the full moon, one of the many finicky ingredients. That’s why it runs out so often in the classroom. It grows like wild in the forest, but only the teachers are allowed to pick it. They say that the forest is too dangerous at night.

It’s downright silly though. Magical barriers surround the school so nothing from the outside can get in. Yuri isn’t scared of the animals either. Wizards heal fast, so any scrapes or bites could be healed within hours. The only real danger would be other students sneaking about at night, but no one else is stupid enough to do that. The wizards and werewolves here believe that ghosts haunt the forest. Yuri knows it’s just a myth to scare off students though. He’s never once encountered one.

The sky darkens and the moon rises. Yuri descends from the tree and treads through the underbrush to the clearing where the white lily-like moonflowers grow in thick patches. He collects enough to make ten potions at least. As he turns to leave, he notices a patch of purple flowers all clumped together and droopy. He recognizes them from his textbook, _A Wizard’s Guide to Werewolves_. It’s wolfsbane. A plan comes together in his head so fast that it makes him giddy with excitement. He’s got an idea for the perfect revenge on JJ. Hurriedly, he stuffs a few of the wolfsbane plants, careful to pull at the root, into his bag.

He walks toward the school before he can change his mind. He doubt he could have even if he’d wanted to. The plan is too good. It’ll be the best prank he’s ever done, and JJ will finally get what he deserves. He’s so consumed with the plan that he doesn’t hear the animal in the bushes. In fact, he doesn’t even see it when it jumps out behind him and bites his leg.

Yuri falls face-first into the ground. He catches himself with his hands, but muddy soil gets into his mouth. The flavor makes him nauseous, almost stops him from getting up. Pain hits him instead, and he has enough good sense to run. The animal—whatever it is—chases after him. Its paws patter against the leaves and small rabbits race ahead in the distance trying to escape its teeth.

The school is getting closer and closer, but so is the animal. Its snarls are so loud that it seems as if it’s beside him—or worse, inside of him. The sounds echo in his mind. He can’t get it out. He feels he’ll go mad if he can’t escape it.

A ray of hope shines ahead. It’s just a wooden board, but it looks big enough to fly. Yuri jumps on top of it, urges it to rise with his magic, and zooms towards the castle. The sounds of the animal fade. Yuri wants to look back and see what it was, but he’s hardly steady on the makeshift hover board. It rocks as he gets closer to the castle, threatening to send him to his death. Yuri’s heart is racing so fast. He can hear the blood pumping in his ears.

An open window catches his attention. He doesn’t care where it leads, instead focusing on directing the board through the window. The board dips at the last minute, and Yuri jumps.

He makes it inside the window as the board crunches against the stones of the building. He’s landed in a pile of laundry. The room seems to be empty, but it’s clearly a bedroom. As his gaze flicks around the room, he notices posters of wolves, a multitude of shiny trophies and medals, and letterman jacket that all the jocks wear.

A sinking feeling forms in the pit of his stomach. This isn’t just any jock’s room, this is Jean-Jacques Leroy’s room. His hands shake as he remembers his plan. He doesn’t have to wait. He could do it now. JJ is probably with his girlfriend Isabella, a particularly nasty werewolf who leads the cheerleading team. Yuri hadn’t worked out how he would get into JJ’s room just yet, and the more he thinks about it, the more impossible it seems. This might be his only chance.

Yuri withdraws the wolfsbane from his bag and picks up JJ’s pillow. The best place for it would be inside the pillowcase, but it is likely JJ will feel the wolfsbane before it can have any effect. An undetectable charm would fix that. Yuri has never managed to do it right in the classroom, but it’s the only chance he has for this to work.

He closes his eyes and focuses. The words are easy. He pictures them in his head. The page from the book as clear as if he had it before him. He shapes the magic, directs the magic, and then when he feels he’s infused enough, he releases it.

A bomb explodes.

The wolfsbane explodes.

Yuri opens his eyes to see purple powder floating everywhere in the room. He runs to the door, hoping no one heard the sound. To him, it sounded deafening, but he’d been right beside it when his magic exploded. He coughs as the purple powder spreads through the hallway, into the common room, and follows him out into the corridor.

Running, he tries to think about what to do. Should he go to Viktor and ask for his help? But he’ll only get in trouble if he does that. There weren’t any werewolves in the dorm. Why was that? Yuri catches a glimpse of the moon through the window and remembers. A full moon. They’ll all be transforming tonight. The school has a special room underground that magically expands into a fake forest. They let the werewolf students run around down there, even leave out meat for them to catch. None of them will be allowed out until sunrise.

Yuri relaxes. No one can pin this on him. So long as he gets back to his dorm quickly and washes the purple powder from his clothes. He runs now, but not too fast. He doesn’t want a teacher to stop him for running in the corridors.

When he reaches the dorm, he’s out of breath, even though he didn’t run that hard. He enters the shared bathrooms, turns on the water in the shower, and stands under it with his clothes still on. Then he falls to the ground, and the world goes black.

 


	2. Chapter 2

Eyes open. Looks down. Flashes of white fur. A blanket? Tries to push it off. Paws. Claws. Fading to black.

 

Yuri wakes with a jolt. He sits upright, holds his hands before him. They are normal. He wiggles them in the sunlight streaming through the window. He looks down at his body. No fur blanket, but he is very naked. His clothes are nowhere to be seen.

A throat clears, and Yuri spots the figure leaning against the wall. The boy skulks towards him. Seung-gil Lee. A fourth-year wizard. He hands Yuri a pair of boxers folded on top of trousers and a T-shirt. “I had to burn your clothes,” he says in a smooth monotone.

“Why?” Yuri asks, slipping on the new clothes as quickly as he can. He’s painfully aware of Seung-gil’s cold, dark eyes upon him. Nervously he runs a hand through his silky blond hair.

“They were contaminated.”

Yuri remembers the bomb—or really the spell gone wrong. It’s not the first time his magic has blown up when he was trying to cast a spell. But he’d never messed up quite so badly before. “The wolfsbane,” he whispers to himself.

“That’s right. You could have killed yourself.”

Confused, Yuri looks up at Seung-gil now. “Killed myself? But wolfsbane is harmless to wizards.”

Seung-gil is frowning deeply. He looks like he’s trying to speak with his eyes, but Yuri can’t understand the words. Seung-gil sighs at last and says, with an annoyed look on his face, “You’re not just a wizard anymore.”

“What?”

“Last night you had a bite mark on your leg. It’s healed now from your wizard powers, but you’ve already changed. Last night you changed. It happens quickly on a full moon. Within an hour of the bite.”

Yuri pulls his leg up and stares at the skin where the bite should have been. It’s as smooth as if nothing happened. The animal that was chasing him…it can’t have been a werewolf, could it? “I changed? How?”

“Fur and fangs. You went full wolf. You’re lucky that I was the one that found you in the bathroom. You’d be dead otherwise.”

Yuri gulps. He knows it’s true. Wizards are taught to kill werewolves on sight. If a werewolf bites a human, the human turns into a werewolf. But if a werewolf bites a wizard, the wizard dies. “How am I alive if I’m a wizard?” Yuri asks.

Seung-gil shrugs. “Probably because your powers suck.”

Yuri glares at him, but he knows he must be right. The bite kills wizards because two different kinds of powerful magic cannot coexist. Hypothetically, if the wizard had weak enough magic, he could survive the bite. None of the history books spoke of it happening, but there was a first time for everything. “So I’m a—”

“Mutt,” Seung-gil finishes for him.

“How do you know so much about werewolves?” Yuri asks.

“My mum’s one,” he says. Interracial relationships between werewolves and wizards are rare, though not unheard of. The children always take on the race of their same-sex parent, so Seung-gil’s dad had to be a wizard.

“Did I, uh, eat anything last night?”

Seung-gil shakes his head. “No, your body was too busy trying to recover from the wolfsbane poisoning. I mixed up some potions to help. You completely lost your wizard side when you transformed, so your body did nothing to heal you.”

“I really did go full wolf then…” Yuri runs his fingers through his hair and squeezes his temples. This doesn’t feel real. It’s all happening too fast. Yesterday he was the worst wizard at this school, and today he’s the only surviving wizard of a werewolf bite. “Wait, where’s my bag?” he asks, suddenly remembering that his potion is due today.

“I had to burn the bag. Don’t worry though. I kept the moonflowers and your textbooks.” Seung-gil points to a plastic bag on his desk. “Unfortunately I don’t have a spare bag for you.” He doesn’t sound too gutted about it.

“I’ll be heading out then. Thank you for your help.” Yuri snatches the bag from the desk and heads to the door. Seung-gil puts out a hand to stop him.

“You owe me,” he says, his intense dark eyes boring into Yuri’s green ones. “I’ll let you know when it’s time to pay up.”

Yuri nods, a bit scared. What would Seung-gil ask him to do? “I’ll see you later.”

“Bye.”

As Yuri rushes to the potions lab, he puts aside all his thoughts on werewolves and wolfsbane. One thing at a time.

 

It isn’t until lunch, after he’s passed his potions exam by one percent, that he hears about the werewolves’ dorm. The werewolves had returned in the morning to find their rooms inaccessible because of how much wolfsbane powder covered the dorm. According to Minami, Professor Celestino had ordered that none of the students could enter their rooms for any reason. The students would be given clothes and bathroom essentials so they could get through the four weeks it would take to decontaminate the dorm.

“Four weeks?” Yuri asks in shock.

“That’s ridiculous,” Mila says from beside him. She’d been studying for her next exam, but her full attention is on Minami now.

Minami nods vigorously. “Yeah, they’ve got to call in professionals for the cleanup. Werewolves can’t get near the stuff, so it’ll be a team of wizards.”

“Where will you sleep in the meantime?”

Minami flashes a grin, one of his canines showing over his lip. “We’ll be staying in the wizards’ dorm rooms.”

“But there aren’t any extra rooms,” Mila complains.

“They’ll pair us up with a wizard.” Minami nudges Yuri’s shoulder. “Oh, I hope we get paired together!”

Yuri rubs his arm, attempting a smile, but he can barely keep it together. Not only had his magical explosion nearly killed him, but now he’d have to share a room with a werewolf. This prank had backfired in so many ways. He couldn’t imagine how his day could get any worse.

 

Relief spreads through Yuri as he reads the list of room assignments. There are more wizards than werewolves, so he’s still got the room to himself. He whistles gleefully on his way back to his room. A hand stops him. It’s Seung-gil Lee, grinning from ear-to-ear.

“Plisetsky. It’s time you pay up on that favor. You’re taking my roommate instead.” He doesn’t leave room for argument.

Feeling like a deflating balloon, Yuri trudges back over to the list to see who is assigned to Seung-gil Lee’s room. “Oh, fuck.” Jean-Jacques Leroy.

 

Professor Lilia goes into the bedrooms one at a time to magically divide the king-sized beds into two twin-sized beds. When she’s done, the werewolves enter the dorm rooms. Yuri focuses on reading a book while JJ sets his bag down and puts his clothes into the two drawers Yuri left open for him.

The silence is awkward. It’s clear that JJ isn’t happy with this arrangement either, but Yuri doesn’t have any other male friends to trade roommates with. He’s stuck with JJ for the next four weeks, and it’s all his fault. Stupid revenge plan. Stupid idea.

He reminds himself that this is actually JJ’s fault. JJ is the one who tried to sabotage his potions exam in the first place. Not only is he the reason Yuri wanted to seek revenge and came up with that dumb plan, but he’s the reason Yuri was in the forest in the first place. Yuri is a werewolf—or a mutt, as Seung-gil called it—because of Jean-Jacques Fucking Leroy. He hates him more than he’s ever hated anyone.

“I heard you passed your potions exam,” JJ says with a cocky smile. He looks like some prince charming from a fairytale, and Yuri would like nothing more than to punch him in the face.

What the fuck is he up to? Yuri shoots him a harsh glare. “I’ve got to go study.” Without another glance at JJ, he picks up his bag and jets out of the room. He doesn’t actually need to study, but anywhere else is better than sitting in a room with JJ.

Yuri finds Minami sitting at a table alone in the back of the library. He joins him and Yuri quizzes him on the material for their Botany exam. Minami keeps interrupting to complain about his new roommate, a quiet Chinese wizard named Guang-Hong Ji. Yuri has had classes with him since his first year, but he’s never even spoken to the boy. Not that it really mattered though. Guang-Hong has adopted two fourth-years as friends, Yuuri Katsuki and Phichit Chulanont. He doesn’t seem particularly interested in talking to wizards his own age.

According to Minami, Guang-Hong despises werewolves. It’s no surprise since his parents are some of the few wizards on the Magic Council. For the past twenty years or so, the werewolves have dominated the magical world. Dangerous and too clever for their own good.

Grinning, Minami swings his feet beneath the table. “I’m glad you’re not like that,” he says.

Yuri laughs nervously, relieved that Minami has no way to read his mind. “I judge a person for who they are, not what they are.” It’s some bullshit answer he’d read in a book once. A romantic saga about a human falling in love with a werewolf. Mila had been obsessed with it, so Yuri decided to give it a go. He’s regretted it ever since.

 

Yuri doesn't return to his room until after dinner. He's hoping JJ is the type to go to sleep early. But of course he's wrong.

JJ is in his room surrounded by his werewolf buddies. Emil and Michele are sipping some strange smoky green potion while Leo juggles three oranges. Worst of all, Isabella sits on JJ's lap, and the two are making out as if they're alone in the room.

Yuri explodes. Or he thinks he does. His chest is tight. Heat travels up his body, settling into his face. His fists clench. He wants to run over there and yank Isabella away. He wants to punch JJ, to make him feel the pain he's inflicted upon Yuri.

But he does none of these things. Instead, he turns around and heads to Seung-gil's room. Frantically, he knocks on the door. There's no answer at first, but then a sleepy Seung-gil opens the door. He looks annoyed. Yuri did just wake him up.

"Let me in," Yuri insists. He won't take no for an answer.

Seung-gil bars the door with his arm. "Do you have any idea what time it is?"

"Exactly! JJ and his friends and that slutty girlfriend of his are all partying in my room. This is your fault, so please, let me inside."

Seung-gil looks like he won't budge. He exhales, clearly annoyed. "You need to talk to JJ about your visitor policy if you want to keep his friends out."

Yuri grits his teeth. "I will. I just can't do it tonight." He must look so pitiful because the surly Korean actually lets him in and listens patiently while Yuri complains about JJ. It really isn’t fair that he gets everything. Perfect grades. Stunning good looks. Powerful magic. A girlfriend. Stunning good looks.

“You said ‘stunning good looks’ twice,” Seung-gil points out.

Yuri scowls. “It’s just not fair, all right? I work twice as hard as him, but I get nothing. Absolutely nothing.”

“I wouldn’t say you have nothing. You’re what they call a pretty boy. Some girls go for that.”

Yuri doesn’t want to attract any girls. He’d tried to develop a crush on Mila the year before, but the feelings just weren’t right. Despite his misgivings, he knows the truth: girl don’t catch his fancy. At all. But he isn’t about to admit that to Seung-gil. He doesn’t even know exactly what it means. Maybe he just isn’t cut out for love. He’s used to being alone; it’ll be okay, he tells himself. The loneliness deep within his heart leaves a pang in his chest, but he ignores it.

“Or are you interested in boys?”

The words catch Yuri off guard. He’s thought about it before, of course, but he’s never had a crush on a boy so it can’t be that. “No. I just don’t care about dating, all right?”

Seung-gil nods. “That’s me as well. People act as if you need a special someone to be happy, but I’ve never needed anyone. I’m a lone wolf, you could say, without the wolf part.”

“So does that make me the true lone wolf?” Yuri asks. The words leave a bitter taste in his mouth. He’s been trying to forget about the forest, what he’s become, how he has more in common with JJ and his friends now than before. What will happen on the next full moon? Will he have to lock himself up in his room, have Seung-gil hold onto the key for him until morning?

“The key to be happy while alone is to be comfortable with yourself.”

Wise words, but Yuri doesn’t think he’s anywhere near that. “It’s a little hard to be comfortable with yourself when you have werewolf magic running through your veins.”

Seung-gil’s gaze is sympathetic as he walks over to his desk and picks out a couple of books from the ones against the wall. He hands two books to Yuri. “I’m sure the only books you’ve read on werewolves are through the wizard colored lenses. They tend to paint them as monsters, abominations. But these books are more truthful. You will need to better understand werewolves. This new magic doesn’t just disappear if you ignore it. It’s going to be there for the rest of your life.” He taps the worn cover of _The Wonders of Werewolves._ “Learn to accept who you’ve become.”

 


	3. Chapter 3

Around two in the morning, Yuri sneaks back into his room. Thankfully, JJ’s friends have left, but Isabella is curled up with JJ in the bed. It makes Yuri feel sick, but he’s too tired to do anything about it now. He brushes his teeth and changes into his pajamas, then settles into bed to see if he can get any sleep before the next day’s exams.

Yuri passes his Botany exam with flying colors. Luckily, it was a written test this time, and memorizing words is his specialty.

Once classes end for the day, Yuri gets the chance to talk to JJ. They agree not to have any guests in their room. The plan works well since it means JJ spends a lot of time in his friends’ rooms instead. Over the next several days, Yuri hardly sees JJ, which suits him just fine. He spends the time trying to keep up his grades, learn more about werewolves, and hanging out with Mila and Minami.

After the two weeks of exams are over, volarball practice resumes. Though volarball is similar to volleyball, it is a much more dangerous sport. The court they play on changes as they play, sometimes lifting them on clouds, shooting lightning across the ground, or filling with quicksand so they all sink. Magic makes the game infinitely more difficult than volleyball. The only reason Yuri plays is because Mila begged him to join, and she just plays because Otabek is the team captain. Neither Yuri or Mila play in any games because they’re just second-stringers, but they still have to go to practice twice a week.

This particular practice is more annoying than usual. Coach Cialdini, or Cece, as the player like to call him, is a strict werewolf obsessed with winning. He’s angry that the students didn’t keep up with practicing on their own time during exams, so he makes them run extra drills.

“You’re not breaking out in a sweat,” Mila says in surprise after their fifth round of drills.

Yuri shrugs. “I guess I got enough practice running around the school.”

Laughter breaks out nearby, and Yuri looks up just in time to see the volarball soaring straight towards his head. It’s high in the air, so he raises his hands and sets it over to the laughing fourth-years. JJ catches the ball and stares at Yuri, stunned.

Cece blows the whistle. “Plisetsky, what was that?”

“Nothing. Sorry, Coach,” Yuri mumbles. He should have just let the ball hit him. It would’ve hurt less than Cece’s idea of punishment.

“All right. We’re going to do a practice game. No motion. Plisetsky go in for Katsuki as setter.”

He wants him to play with the starter players? Yuri’s hands shake but he takes the position on the court. He doesn’t know if this is punishment or a chance. It’s a blessing that it’s a no-motion game. That’ll make it ten times easier, so hopefully he won’t embarrass himself in front of everyone.

Yuri kicks ass. It feels as if time is slowly for him to receive the ball. He’s ultra aware of everyone on the court. Passing is as easy as slicing bread. He wonders if it’s a werewolf thing. They do always seem to be better at playing than the wizards. Coach insists that it’s all about physical strength and how strong your magic is, but Yuri knows he’s weak in both areas. Unless, of course, his werewolf magic is stronger than his wizard magic. He’s never considered that before, but it does make an awful lot of sense. Werewolf magic usually kills a wizard when they’re bitten because it’s so strong. Could this curse actually be a blessing in disguise?

“Congrats, Plisetsky. You’re first string for the next game,” Cece says at the end of practice. “But make sure to set to JJ more often. He’s got the most powerful spike. Next practice we’ll be playing in motion, so you’d better be ready to work hard.”

“Yes, coach,” Yuri says, attempting to infuse confidence into his voice. He walks over to Mila, who is staring at him in disbelief.

“So you mean to tell me that this whole time you’ve been playing, you were only playing badly because you didn’t like the sport?” she asks.

That’s ridiculous, but Yuri knows it’s a better explanation than ‘I got bitten by a werewolf a couple weeks ago and survived.’ He nods. “Yeah, I thought the sport was stupid, but after these past couple weeks, I don’t know…I’m just tired of always coming in last place, I guess.”

“Because you’re living with the legendary Jean-Jacques Leroy,” Mila jokes. “He’s rubbed off on you, huh? And here I thought you hated him.”

“I do,” Yuri says sharply. “He and his girlfriend are terrible people.”

“Yeah, his girlfriend is a total bitch. She’s kicked me out of the room almost every night since she moved in so they can make out and whatever else they do.” Mila shudders.

Yuri almost feels guilty. Almost. It’s his fault that JJ has to go to Mila’s room to make out with Isabella, but Yuri knows he wouldn’t be able to stand it if JJ did that in his room. “I’m gonna head to the potions lab. Professor Georgi said he wanted me to come by sometime this week.”

“See you later.” Mila waves at him.

 

In the potions lab, Yuri walks in to find Leo and JJ bent over a cauldron. They’re still wearing their practice uniforms for volarball. They haven’t seen him yet, so there’s time for him to run outside and find a teacher to report them to, but curiosity draws him nearer. There aren’t any spell books near them, just a scrap of paper.

Leo notices Yuri first. “Hey, you’re that kid from today.”

Yuri takes a tentative step closer to them. “Yeah, that’s me.”

“He’s my temporary roommate,” JJ adds. “The one who, uh…”

“Won’t let strangers hang out in his room,” Leo says. But he doesn’t sound bitter about it. He smiles at Yuri instead. “So if we get to know each other a little, I could come hang out there?”

“Sure,” Yuri says, though he’s not sure why. It’s a stupid idea, really.

Leo beckons Yuri closer until he’s standing beside them. “We’re mixing up a moonshine potion. Doesn’t it smell heavenly?”

“Moonshine?” Yuri’s never heard of it. To be honest, it sounds completely made up.

“Like the drink,” Leo says. “It’s got a good kick to it. We use it to relax after practice some days.”

“The drink? You mean alcohol?”

Leo tilts his head in amusement. “First-years nowadays don’t get drunk? Wow, I really must have been a wild one.”

“I’m a second-year,” Yuri corrects, lifting his chin slightly. He doesn’t want these guys to look down on him. He’s never had friends that drank potions for the fun of it. Occasionally Viktor would let him have some wizard’s wine, but that was about it. “And I’ve had alcohol before.”

“Want to drink with us then?”

“Yes.” Yuri curses inwardly for saying it. He shouldn’t care what others think about him, shouldn’t cave in to this peer pressure. But like he said to Mila, he’s tired of always coming in last place, and despite what he said to Seung-gil, he is lonely. He wants something, even though he has no idea what.

They go to Yuri’s room to drink. Each of them start with a shot. The taste burns through Yuri’s mouth, but the warmth that spreads through his chest is comforting. He doesn’t know how much it takes to get drunk. This feels good, he has to admit.

After the sixth shot, Leo is looking at him with confusion. “I thought you’d be a lightweight.”

“Why?” Yuri asks.

Leo chuckles and holds up his cup in a toast, then downs another shot. He wipes his mouth and meets Yuri’s eyes. “Because you’re a wizard.”

“Not all wizards are lightweights.” Yuri isn’t even sure if that’s true, but he sure doesn’t want Leo or JJ getting suspicious of him. As if they’d believe he’s also a werewolf. Every textbook says that his existence is impossible. He should have died within an hour of receiving the bite.

“Let’s put on some music,” JJ says. He pulls out an electronic device and taps buttons on it until blaring music sounds from it. “That’s more like it.” He starts dancing to the music, nodding his head and moving his hips. JJ grabs Leo’s hands and leads him in what looks like a tango, then he spins out of it and grabs on to Yuri. He’s definitely very drunk, but his gaze looks so serious. He twirls Yuri, and then collapses onto the bed, dragging Yuri down with him. He’s on top of Yuri, and Yuri can’t breathe.

JJ runs a thumb down Yuri’s cheek. “You’re so beautiful,” he says, sounding awed.

Leo yanks him off of Yuri, laughing, and brings him over to the bed on the other side of the room. “That’s enough moonshine for you, mister. Come on. Sleep it off.” He helps JJ get situated in the bed, then comes over to sit next to Yuri. “Sorry about that,” he says. “He’s a bit of a lightweight.”

“A bit?”

“Okay, more than a bit. I can’t believe he was so out of it that he thought you were a girl.”

Yuri laughs nervously. “Hah, yeah. It must be because of my hair.”

Grinning, Leo stands and picks up the leftover bottles of moonshine. He secures the stoppers on all of them and stuffs them into his bookbag. “Well, it was fun drinking with you. What’s your name again?”

“Yuri Plisetsky.”

Leo holds out his hand. “I’m Leo de la Iglesia.”

Yuri shakes it and doesn’t bother to mention that everyone at school knows who Leo is. Then Leo leaves, and Yuri is left to his thoughts. His heart is still pounding in his chest. The moment JJ called him beautiful keeps replaying in his head. It should scare him. Instead it fills him with a mix of happiness and dread. He knows JJ was drunk and didn’t know what he was saying, but a tiny part of him wonders what it would mean if he’d been serious.

Pulling the covers over his head, Yuri tries to shut out the thoughts. It’s ridiculous. JJ is an asshole. He wouldn’t want someone like that interested in him. Aside from being totally impossible, it would be completely stupid. Yuri hates JJ. He’s always hated JJ, and that will never change. Simple as that.

 


	4. Chapter 4

Over the next week, Yuri rises in popularity. Coach Celestino is thrilled with his newfound athletic abilities, as he succeeds at both no-motion and in-motion volarball. Leo and JJ have adopted Yuri into their gang, even going so far as to give him the recipes to a couple of special drink potions. Yuri knows better than to attempt them himself, but he’s grateful that they thought of him.

It’s weird for him to suddenly be a part of the in-crowd. All the teasing has stopped. JJ and his friends all come to Yuri’s room after practices to hang out. Leo even starts tutoring him in potions when he admits that it’s one of his weak spots. Life is getting better and better for Yuri, and he’s still in shock that these people that tormented him are now his friends. All because he’s gotten better at sports.

Mila tells him not to get a big head. As soon as he messes up, they’ll leave him. He should be worried, but he isn’t. He feels comfortable, like he’s finally where he belongs. Maybe he doesn’t hate JJ anymore…

It’s the beginning of the fourth week of living with JJ when things take a turn for the worse. Viktor let Yuri out of magic class early since he said he had a headache. He returned to his room to find JJ and Isabella making out under the covers.

Yuri can’t control what happens. Maybe it’s the wolf in him. Maybe it’s the false bubble of security he’s built finally popping. Or maybe it’s something even stranger. But he cannot stand for this. He tears off the covers and makes Isabella leave. He’s poking at JJ’s chest, screaming at the top of his lungs, forgetting about all the progress they’d made in the last week and a half.

He doesn’t need JJ as a friend. He doesn’t need anyone. How could he have forgotten something so important? He’s a lone wolf. No one should change that.

JJ grabs his hands, and suddenly the world stops. Yuri stops shouting. JJ waits patiently, his eyes calm as he stares at Yuri. “Are you okay?” he asks after a while.

Yuri takes a deep breath. He hadn’t realized that he’d stopped breathing. “Sorry, I…I think I overreacted.”

“I’ve noticed that you get anxious sometimes,” JJ says. While still holding Yuri’s hands, he rubs his thumbs along Yuri’s palm. It’s comforting, allows Yuri to think again.

“Sometimes, yeah.”

“I shouldn’t have brought Isabella here. We agreed on the rules, and I broke them. I’m sorry, Yuri.” He sounds honest. Not what Yuri would have expected.

Yuri feels the tears well in his eyes. Why did he have to react like that? He couldn’t be mad at JJ anymore. The headache must be messing with his mind. Yuri pries his hands away from JJ and walks over to his desk to find the medicine for headaches. It’s a slow-working one but effective. In an hour, he’ll be good as new.

“Does seeing people kiss bother you that much?” JJ asks, clearly concerned. “I’ve noticed that you don’t really do that sort of stuff with anyone.”

“I don’t need to,” Yuri says. “But it doesn’t bother me. I mean, obviously it did just now, but that’s just because…” Yuri’s voice trails away. He doesn’t quite know how to explain it because he doesn’t even understand it himself. Anyone else and he wouldn’t care. But seeing JJ acting all happy and kissy with someone else has always bothered him. He thought it was because he was jealous of JJ’s perfect life, but now he isn’t so sure.

“But do you want to be with someone?”

“I don’t know,” Yuri admits. “Even if I did, though, I doubt it would work out. I can’t be perfect like you.”

JJ snorts. “Me? Perfect? Far from it.”

“You have the highest grades in your year, you’re the star player of the volarball team, you’ve got a smoking hot girlfriend, even if she is a bit of a bitch. How is that not perfect?”

JJ sighs and walks over to the bed to sit down. “I have to work harder than everyone else because my parents expect so much out of me. They were both top students, both stars of their volarball team in high school. They started dating their sophomore year. There’s just so much pressure for me to be like them. Too much pressure. That’s why I drink. It’s one of the few things that can get my mind off that.”

“What about your girlfriend?”

JJ lifts his eyebrows and sighs again. “It’s complicated. Yeah, it feels good physically to be with her, but I chose her because she’s who my parents would expect me to date and marry.”

“Do you like her?”

“I don’t dislike her. But I’ve never really been able to talk to her about anything real, you know? Actually, I haven’t been able to have conversations like that with anyone, not even my friends. We get along and joke and have a good time. They help distract me and all, but I still feel like I’m screaming inside and I can’t tell anyone because everyone expects me to be perfect.”

“So why are you telling me?” Yuri asks softly.

JJ folds his hands together in lap and meets Yuri’s eyes. “Well, I need to talk to someone, and you just showed your vulnerable side, so I… If it’s not okay to talk to you about it, I’ll stop.”

“No, it’s fine. I’m just surprised is all.”

JJ chuckles. “Yeah, anyone would be if they found out. My life feels so empty most of the time. Like everything I do is either what is expected of me or a way to distract me from dealing with my problems. When can I do what I want?”

“What do you want to do?”

“That’s the question, isn’t it? The thing is, I’ve doing this bullshit routine so long that I don’t even know what I want anymore. I used to be able to talk to my uncle about this sort of stuff, but he died several years back.”

Yuri has to change the subject because he doesn’t think he can bear the whole dead relatives talk right now. He misses his parents so much that his heart feels like it’s been torn into pieces. “Why did you tease me all these years?” he asks.

“The same reason I’m dating Isabella. To fit in. It’s what Emil and Micky expect from me, so I felt obligated to deliver even at the expense of others. I’m sure you can relate. You know that feeling you get from newfound popularity. You’re just so happy and so high on life and you don’t want to screw it up, so you do stupid things in order to keep it; sometimes you end up becoming someone you’re not.”

Yuri understands it now. He wonders if he’d do the same if Micky and Emil start teasing someone in front of him. He doesn’t want to hurt anyone, but if he loses that high-on-life feeling, he’ll be the one hurt. Then again, it’s a really selfish way to live. “What if we teamed up against them next time they try to tease someone?”

JJ nods. “Yeah, I think I could do that if you’re supporting me too. I just worry about being the odd man out.”

Yuri can’t help it; he bursts out laughing. “You’re the one worried about being the odd man out? That’s been me my entire life. You don’t have anything to worry about. You can always blame it on me. Say that I forced you to stop teasing people.”

“I wouldn’t throw you under the bus,” JJ says, and something about his tone makes Yuri believe it. Neither boy acknowledges it, but Yuri knows that today is the start of the deepest friendship he’s ever had.

 


	5. Chapter 5

The week passes too quickly. Before he knows it, it’s the last night JJ is staying in the dorm with him. The others were there drinking until midnight, but now they’ve gone back to their rooms. Ever since their talk at the beginning of the week, JJ has stopped drinking. Yuri drank some during the week, but he didn’t this night because he wants to enjoy the last night with JJ sober.

JJ is sitting against his bed while Yuri cleans up some of the mess JJ’s friends left behind.

"You guys are so lucky,” JJ says thoughtfully. “Wizards, I mean. You can fly broomsticks. All we can do is run around in forests and pray not to get shot."

Yuri whips his head around. "Broomsticks?"

JJ chuckles. "Yeah, don't you guys whiz around on flying broomsticks?"

Laughter makes it hard for Yuri to speak. "Why would anyone fly on a broomstick of all things?"

"That's what all the storybooks and movies say. Are you telling me you can't fly on broomsticks?"

Yuri plops down next to him on the floor and shrugs. "I suppose we could. All it would take is a hover charm. But it's highly impractical. I flew on a wooden board once and nearly fell to my death."

JJ crosses his arms, looking for once as if he doesn't understand. "Then what do you fly on?"

Yuri grins. "Why don't I show you?"

They tiptoe through the common room and into the empty corridor, the lanterns along the walls flickering with a dim orange glow. "Here we go," Yuri says, stopping in the middle of the hallway. He sits down abruptly.

JJ’s face contorts in concern. "What are you doing?"

"Just trust me, all right?" Yuri pats the spot next to him. He knows that it’s silly to ask JJ to trust him since they were enemies until recently. But JJ carries a strong sense of curiosity. He hopes it’ll be enough for JJ to trust him just this once. Flying is about the only bit of magic that Yuri doesn't constantly mess up. Most wizards wouldn’t have been able to fly while standing on a wooden board.

JJ rolls his eyes, then sits beside him.

For a moment nothing happens, then air starts to whoosh around them. The rectangular carpet beneath them rises and Yuri grips the front edge of it. "Let's fly," he whispers to the carpet. He could swear he felt JJ shiver at his words.

The carpet barrels down the hallway, twisting and turning at impossible speeds, until Yuri is sure he imagined JJ's hypersensitivity.

They ride through the corridors, up and down staircases, and finally out the open window at the top of the astronomy building. Yuri is more cautious once they are outside. Ever since the werewolf bit him, he’s kept his outside night excursions to a minimum. Life would be so much easier if he'd just failed his potions exam, instead of sneaking off into the woods to retrieve the stupid moonflower. Werewolves ruined everything...and yet he’s enjoying this carpet ride with one.

JJ isn't like other werewolves, Yuri has to admit. JJ doesn't hate wizards the same way other werewolves do. He seems curious to learn more about them, and Yuri really wants to share about the greatness of wizards.

The wind suddenly picks up, and Yuri's control over the carpet slips. Before he can grip it again, they crash into the branches of a tree. Rubbing his head, Yuri sits up on the tree branch. Fortunately he hasn't fallen down. He looks around to see JJ beside him, unharmed but with leaves and twigs adorning his hair like a crown.

“Long live King JJ,” Yuri jokes.

JJ brushes the leaves from his hair. "You call that a landing?"

Yuri shrugs. "I told you I'm the worst sorcerer here."

And then the most magical thing happens. They both start laughing. For once JJ isn't laughing to make fun of Yuri; he’s laughing with Yuri.

"I didn't expect you to go all Aladdin on me," JJ says once the laughter has settled down.

"Aladdin? What's that?"

"Don't tell me you’ve never watched Disney movies."

"What's a Disney movie?"

JJ ruffles his hair. "I'll show you sometime. Anyways, I think you actually picked a pretty good place to land. Just look at this view."

Yuri turns his head and gazes at the school blanketed in twinkling stars, the moon hung like an ornament above. For a moment his breath catches. The moon is so large that it looks full, but it’ll be another three days until the real full moon. Yuri forces himself to relax, to forget about the change to come. The air is cool and full of life, spring at its finest. "It's beautiful," he says.

“Yeah,” JJ replies. He seems like he wants to say more, but he shuts his mouth and they enjoy the moon in silence for a little while.

Eventually, they get talking again. They stay on that tree branch for hours, gazing at the sky and telling stories of their childhood. As the night wears on, they sit closer and closer until Yuri's leg is right against JJ's. JJ has his arm propped behind Yuri to help stabilize their position on the tree, but Yuri feels as if the part of JJ's arm that is touching his back is on fire. Even his chest feels like it’s burning with magic he's never felt before.

Yuri doesn’t mention it, but he doesn't pull away either. He lets himself feel whatever he’s feeling until faint light pours across the forest and they realize they'd better get back before they get caught.

 

It isn’t until JJ has moved all his stuff out of the room that Yuri realizes how much he’ll miss him. JJ still wants to hang out. It isn’t as if their friendship is over. But it feels different with him gone. He’s become so used to his presence. Professor Lilia arrives to switch the beds back into one, but even as the beds are connected again, he still thinks of one side as his and the other as JJ’s. It’s so weird. He has no idea why he’s feeling so lonely. Has it really been that long since he’s had such a close friend?

The next two days pass without incident. Leo gives Yuri an additional potion lesson on Tuesday, but the only other time Yuri sees anyone from the group is during their volarball practice. And finally it is the dreaded day: the full moon.

Yuri knocks on Seung-gil’s door after he returns to the dorm from classes. Thankfully, Seung-gil has returned too. He grins at Yuri mischievously. “I wondered when I’d be seeing you again,” he says.

“Let me in. We need to talk.”

Seung-gil doesn’t argue this time. Once the door is shut, he asks, “You’re wondering what to do about the full moon, aren’t you?”

“Of course. The books you gave me said that a wolf will go mad if he can’t run around during his transformation. But I don’t want to run in the forest and risk accidentally hurting someone, and I doubt I can sneak into the werewolves’ special underground chamber. Maybe if I put all my stuff in your room for the night and then run around in my room.”

“You’ll be chasing your tail like a numbskull. That won’t work.”

Yuri lets out an agitated breath. “Okay, then what can I do?”

Seung-gil walks over to his cupboard and retrieves what looks like a humidifier, though Yuri’s never seen one in person so he can’t be sure.

“What’s that for?” Yuri asks.

“One moment.” Seung-gil pulls another thing out of his drawer: a purple flower.

The pieces come together in Yuri’s mind. “No way. That’ll kill me.”

“Not if you use the right amount. Look, wolfsbane will knock you out for the whole night if you let this run overnight.”

“But I’ll be a disaster tomorrow if I’m recovering from wolfsbane poison. I have volarball practice!”

Seung-gil glares at him. “Do you want to go mad or not? This is the only way to protect you. If you don’t do this, you’ll become a beast. You won’t be able to think clearly. Even when you’re not changed, you’ll think you’re a wolf. It’s not a pretty sight.”

“Okay, fine. I’ll do it. Maybe I can fake sick for the practice tomorrow.”

Seung-gil trades rooms with Yuri for the night so that the wolfsbane won’t affect Yuri in the following days. After Yuri strips, Seung-gil helps him set up everything: the wolfsbane humidifier, the bonds to tie Yuri to the bed, the music playlist to keep him calm all night. He says he’s done this for his mom before. He knows the proper dosage, he knows exactly when Yuri will change back, and he knows how to help flush the residual wolfsbane out of his system afterward. Cleaning the wolfsbane out of his room will take a few days, but he’s assured Yuri that he doesn’t mind.

Then he locks Yuri in the room.

Alone. But wide awake. The wolfsbane doesn’t have any effect on him right away. It’s a slow-working poison since it isn’t in bomb form this time. He expects it to be painful, but it isn’t. All of sudden the change comes on. That’s when the pain starts. He can feel his body reshaping, his fingernails growing, his teeth becoming fangs. He thrashes around, but he can’t break through the bonds.

He forgets where he is. All he can think is that a hunter has captured him. He’ll be skinned and eaten if he can’t escape. Desperation makes him struggle harder, but it’s still not enough. He whimpers, accepts his death, and closes his eyes.

 


	6. Chapter 6

Excruciating pain awakes him in the morning. He blinks up at Seung-gil, who holds open a spell book. “A pain curse, really?” Yuri asks, annoyed.

“Be glad you survived the night,” Seung-gil says. “Come with me to the bathroom. We have to get you decontaminated before lessons.”

“Let me put on some clothes.”

“No can do,” Seung-gil says. “If you put on your clothes, we’ll have to burn them.”

They scurry to the boys’ bathroom quickly. The decontamination process is almost as painful as the waking-up process, but thankfully it doesn’t last too long. Then Yuri is free to run back to his room and put on some clothes again.

As they exit the bathroom, Otabek sees them. He glances from Seung-gil to Yuri, then back again. “Good morning,” he says and walks past them without another word. He’s the dorm head, so he would be the one to report them, but he doesn’t seem in the mood to do so. As long as he doesn’t think they were doing indecent things in the bathroom…

Yuri contemplates skipping volarball practice that day, but he decides that he feels up to it. The poison is definitely having an effect on him, as he’s slower than usual, but he thinks he can still perform well enough. And he does…until about halfway through practice. He’s panting and out of breath and ends up leaning against the volarball net, completely forgetting that the thing is made of electricity magic. It sends a bolt of electricity through them and he collapses onto the ground.

Otabek helps him over to the benches to sit down.

“Thanks,” he says.

Otabek puts his mouth close to Yuri’s ear and says, “Don’t let your boyfriend affect your game-play.”

“My boyfriend?” Yuri instinctively looks over at JJ, though he’s not sure why.

“I saw you guys this morning. Don’t pretend like that didn’t happen. I’m not one to discriminate, and I won’t tell anyone, so long as you focus on volarball. You’re a part of this team. Coach believes in you. Don’t let everyone down.” Then he jogs back onto the court, smiling at his teammates as if he didn’t just threaten Yuri.

The effects of the wolfsbane poison last for the entire week. Yuri sits out the second practice of the week in order to avoid failing “the team.” Otabek doesn’t seem pleased about it, but at least he’s not yelling at him for messing up or anything. JJ comes up to Yuri after practice to ask if everything is okay. Yuri says he’s just feeling sick and tells JJ to have fun with his friends.

That evening before dinner Yuri meets Minami and Mila in the library to study for an upcoming Botany test. It’s clear that Mila and Minami have missed spending time with Yuri, so he makes sure to stay with them all the way through dinner.

As Mila and Yuri walk back to their dorm room, he considers telling her about how Otabek threatened him. He doesn’t think she should be pursuing someone like that. Fear stops him though. If she doesn’t believe him, she could confront Otabek about it and then he’d spread that false rumor that Yuri and Seung-gil are an item.

It’s a false rumor, so Yuri isn’t sure why it bothers him so much. They could easily deny it. Or they could just go with it. It could keep potential suitors away, perfect for two lone wolves. However, Yuri knows that he shouldn’t lie about that. He’s already lying about enough as it is, and he doesn’t really want to give people another excuse to tease him.

It isn’t a big deal for guys to like guys at Allegro. The Illusions teacher, Professor Giacometti, definitely swings that way, and no one makes fun of him for it. He’s a very likeable guy though, and when you aren’t likable, people will use any excuse they can to tear you down. Yuri knows this better than anyone.

 

The next week Yuri is back to normal. He performs well in volarball practice again, and he even starts hanging out with JJ and his friends in their dorm after practice. They get drunk there too. JJ still isn’t drinking, but Yuri decides to indulge. He’s had enough stress in the last week with the change, Otabek’s threat, and the wolfsbane poisoning. He’s glad to be doing normal things again.

It’s late. Leo, Emil, and Micky have gone back to their rooms. JJ is telling a story about his uncle, but Yuri is too far gone to understand. He’s just staring at JJ, admiring his chiseled face, his shimmering blue eyes, his strong build. It’s no wonder he’s so popular among the girls.

He broke up with Isabella last week, so the girls have been talking about him nonstop. And Yuri’s been thinking about him nonstop. He wishes they could spend more time together. They’re in different years and live in different dorms, yet he feels like they’re kindred spirits. It’s so comfortable being around JJ now. He can’t believe that just one month ago he hated the guy. Time really does do strange things.

“You look tired,” JJ says. He’s sitting on the bed, one knee up, the other leg flat across the bed.

“I am.” Yuri still manages to smile.

JJ pats the bed beside him. “Come sit with me.”

“Sure.” Yuri crawls onto the bed and sits down with another room to fit two people between them.

JJ laughs and scoots closer to him. “A week ago we were right next to each in a tree. I thought we blew past that barrier.”

Yuri shrugs. “I don’t know. Maybe we did. I’m tired.”

“Here, rest your head on my shoulder.”

“You’re too tall,” Yuri complains.

JJ slides down against the wall so his shoulder is lower. “Come on. I don’t bite. Well, I do, but I won’t bite tonight.”

“The bite only works on a full moon anyways,” Yuri says, hesitantly leaning his head onto JJ’s shoulder. JJ is warm, and his red hoodie makes for a soft cushion.

“I guess I’ll have to wait until next full moon then,” JJ says softly.

Yuri knows it’s a joke, but it still catches him off guard. “Wouldn’t that kill me?”

“Maybe,” JJ says. “But perhaps not. I heard once about a study some wizards conducted that determined that a wizard with weak magic could survive the bite.”

“Oh,” is all Yuri can say. He knows the research to be true, but he’s never heard of such a study and he’s read every werewolf book he could find in the school library, in addition to the ones Seung-gil gave him. He definitely would’ve remembered if that was mentioned before. “Do you remember where you heard that?”

“I think one of my friends said he read it somewhere. I wouldn’t want to risk trying it and killing you though, so you have nothing to worry about.” JJ leans his head against Yuri’s.

Yuri parts his jaw wide in a yawn. “Can I crash here?”

“Of course,” JJ says. He gently nudges Yuri off his shoulder and walks to a small closet to retrieve two extra pillows and an extra blanket for the bed.

Yuri falls asleep before JJ can crawl into the bed with him. He has the most peculiar dream about JJ whispering sweet nothings and kissing him gently.

 


	7. Chapter 7

When he wakes in the morning, Yuri finds himself alone in the bed. At first, he forgets about the dream and wonders if JJ is at breakfast. Then the dream returns to him and he can feel the heat rushing into his cheeks. This feeling in his chest that’s been there for weeks. It’s all because of JJ. How did he not notice before? Yuri Plisetsky is head over heels for Jean-Jacques Leroy, the most popular werewolf in school.

How or why he still isn’t sure of. But he does know that he needs to get out of there before JJ returns. He doesn’t think he can face him just yet. He’ll need to mentally prepare himself before seeing him again. It isn’t until he reaches his room that he realizes he left his bookbag behind.

Yuri decides that he doesn’t care. They have the day off from school. He can retrieve it later. No big deal. Except now he definitely can’t get his thoughts off of JJ. He’s so worried about facing him again. How will he be able to hide this stupid crush now that he’s aware of it?

Maybe he doesn’t need his books for a few days. He’s memorized all his class material. He even went through and memorized his entire potions book, so that he wouldn’t make the same mistake as last time. He can definitely get through the week without his books. Yes, that’s right. He doesn’t need them.

Except…he also has the werewolf books Seung-gil lent to him in there. If JJ decides to poke around, he’ll find them and then what will he think. _Relax, Yuri. Relax._ He’ll just think that Yuri is trying to learn more about his new friends. It won’t out him as a werewolf, he’s sure of it.

A knock sounds at his door, and Yuri’s heart leaps out of his chest. His first thought is that JJ has come all the way here to return his bookbag. He opens the door a crack and sees, with relief, that it’s just Mila. “Come in, come in.” He’s burning to talk about these feelings for JJ. Maybe Mila will understand if he tells her.

Mila eyes him suspiciously and walks into the room.

“What’s up?” Yuri asks.

Mila tilts her head to the side. “You don’t normally invite me into your room. Isn’t this your sacred manly domain or something?”

“Oh, um, sorry. I had the guys over so often. I forgot that I used to have that rule in place.”

Mila nods, looking displeased. “The guys as in JJ and his crowd?”

“Yeah, they’re pretty chill guys. At first, I was very annoyed with them, but now—”

“Stop.” Mila holds up a hand. “I don’t want hear about how awesome you feel to be part of the popular crowd now. I’m here to urge you to stop hanging out with them, in fact. They’re a bad influence on you.”

“What? They’re not a bad influence.”

“I can tell you’re hungover,” Mila says. “Don’t try to deny it. You’ve been drinking with them. You were so hungover last week during practice that you fall into the electrical net.”

“I wasn’t hungover then. I—”

“Save it. Hungover, high, whatever it was, it was all their fault. They are the lowest scum of the earth. You used to agree with me. What happened?” Mila has her hands on her hips, and she’s giving that glare that says she won’t take some lame-ass excuse for an answer.

“Leo is tutoring me in potions. I need his help to pass my exams. Hanging out with the guys is just a side effect. I don’t actually like them, okay?” It’s such a lie that he’s certain Mila will see right through it.

“Oh, so that’s how you’ve been acing your tests. Professor Georgi asks if I knew who was tutoring you. I said that Minami was helping you because I had no idea. Leo de la Iglesia, really?”

“Yes,” Yuri says. “And just so you know, he is actually a good guy.”

“I believe that. His parents work with the police, right? He’s got to be as clean as they come.” She sighs. “Well, I’m relieved to hear you still have your senses. I was so confused at why you would want to hang out with JJ. He’s a monster, as bad as they come.”

Yuri laughs. “Yeah, he’s the reason werewolves have such a bad name.”

Mila pats his shoulder. “I’ve got to head out because I promised Otabek I’d meet him for breakfast.”

“Oh?” Yuri raises an eyebrow. “That’s actually going somewhere?”

Glaring, Mila slaps his arm. “Yes, of course. I am charming after all.”

Yuri rubs his arm. “Absolutely charming.” Yeah, because girls who slap their friends are the most charming creatures of them all. “But are you sure about Otabek? Why not go for someone less stoic? Like Yuuri or Phichit?”

Mila giggles. “Yuuri and Phichit are clearly dating each other. Oh, don’t give me that look. Dating the same sex isn’t that big of a deal. Anyways, see you later.”

Yuri stares after her as she skips out of the room. So…dating guys is okay, unless it’s JJ. Of course it had to be JJ.

 

Allegro’s first volarball match of the year happens a week later. It’s first chance to show off his newfound skills in front of everyone. He’s nervous about it, of course, but it’s mostly because he’s worried he’ll be too distracted by JJ. During practice last week, JJ had returned his bookbag to him, and Yuri had, like a fool, pretended that he hadn’t even realized he’d left it behind. JJ hadn’t said anything about the werewolf books, so maybe he didn’t open it after all.

The match is divided into three rounds, but Allegro manages to win the first two rounds, so the game ends there. Yuri didn’t play his best, but he didn’t completely blow it. Coach looks pleased at least, though Otabek shot him a dirty look every time he was late on a pass. It’ll be another couple weeks before the next match, so Yuri considers it a small victory.

JJ and his friends invite Yuri to join them in celebration. Yuri does, but he spends most of the time talking to Leo instead of drinking and laughing with the others. He doesn’t want Mila’s words to affect him, but he can’t help but feel like he’s doing something wrong by being there in the first place. At least Mila stamped Leo with her approval.

Later, he hears that Otabek and Mila have become an item. He’s not at all pleased, but he knows he has no right to talk Mila out of it. After all, if she knew he liked JJ, she’d be trying to talk him out of it too. Yuri still hangs out with JJ’s group after practices and continues his potion lessons with Leo, but he doesn’t spend any alone time with JJ. He’s afraid and isn’t sure how to act around JJ.

 

Just before the second match, Yuri has his regular potions tutoring with Leo. They’ve been meeting once or twice a week for the past month and a half. Ever since they started, Yuri has gotten much better at potions. He’s grateful to Leo, of course, and proud of himself for sticking with it. He had considered quitting many times before.

Today’s potion is amplifying potion. Leo supervises while Yuri prepares the potion and recites the incantations. In the beginning, Leo helped with all of the potions, but lately he’s wanted Yuri to do the work on his own.

When he’s finished the potion, they test it on the frog. The loud croaks shake the classroom, and Yuri jumps up and down with delight. He almost failed his first year because of that potion, and now he can do it on his own without a problem. He expects Leo to look impressed, but his mouth is set in a deep frown.

“What is it?” Yuri asks.

Leo sits down at a stool and motions for Yuri to sit down beside him. “I’ve noticed something lately.”

“Yeah, what is it?”

Leo takes a deep breath, then says, “I didn’t notice it so much when we started because I was always helping you with the potions, but now that you’re doing them on your own, I can tell with certainty. Your potions, they, uh, don’t smell like wizard’s magic. They smell like werewolf magic.”

Yuri gulps. He hadn’t noticed it himself, probably because his potions never smell like they’re supposed to. Now that he’s aware of it, he sniffs at the potion and catches a whiff of the distinct natural smell that accompanies all werewolf magic.

“So I guess my concern is, how long have you been a werewolf?” Leo waits patiently. It’s clear that he won’t let this off with just a shrug.

“Since midterm exams.”

Leo rubs his chin as if he’s pondering something. “So not quite two months, but getting close. That was my guess since that’s about the time you started to improve in volarball. Yuri, did you know that a couple of wizard scientists did some research on werewolves several years ago. They discovered that while a wizard with weak enough power could survive the bite, their wizard magic couldn’t.”

“Yeah, I heard about that from JJ.” Leo must have been the friend who told him.

“I bet he didn’t tell you how the magic works. When someone is first bitten, the werewolf magic spreads slowly so that it won’t kill a human, or a weak wizard in your case. By three months, the magic takes its full form. Werewolf magic cannot coexist with wizard magic. It’s slowly eating away your wizard magic. Pretty soon you won’t be able to perform wizard spells in your magic classes.”

Yuri swallows, dread filling his stomach. He thought he could keep this a secret, but it seems the truth will have to come out soon. He can’t imagine how Uncle Viktor will react to the news…

“Second question: were you bitten on campus?”

Yuri nods, unable to voice the words.

Leo places a hand on his shoulder. His eyes look darker as he speaks. “Yuri, the scientists who did that research were your parents. They, well, there’s no easy way to say this. They performed experiments on wizards and werewolves.”

“No, they didn’t. They just developed potions in their labs. It had nothing to do with werewolves.”

“It had everything to do with werewolves. Look, my dad was the chief of the magical police at the time. He worked their case. There are boxes and boxes of proof that your parents conducted these experiments just sitting in the evidence room at the police station.”

Yuri lifts his chin. “Say they did conduct experiments, why would the police care?”

“They were luring wizards and werewolves in with false promises. And to ensure that no one outside of there found out, they would kill them and dump the bodies. My father found the bodies. The autopsies connected the murders. It was your parents. The police was coming to arrest them, and rather than be taken into prison, they blew up their lab, killing themselves in the process.”

“No!” Yuri shouts, standing up. His stool clatters to the floor, and the startled frog on the desk croaks loudly.

“Yuri, that’s what happened.”

“No, it’s not.” Yuri shakes his head frantically. “They died in an accident. A potion blew up. That’s what happened.”

Leo sighs, looking sad. “No, that’s just the lie they told to protect you. Please, Yuri, you have to believe me.”

“Why?”

“Because it might explain why this happened to you!”

Yuri deflates, righting his stool and sitting back on it, but he can’t bear to look at Leo. “What do you mean?”

“The police tried to keep quiet about this incident, but the families who lost loved ones to your parents’ experiments, they all know what your parents did. I think someone here might know about them. A wizard or a werewolf, someone related to one of the victims. Someone knows and wanted to take revenge on them by attacking you.”

Yuri shakes his head. “No, that doesn’t make any sense. How could they have known I’d be outside anyways? I was only out there because of potions…” He remembers the library, how he’d left his bag, how JJ and the others had snickered at them. Could it be one of them?

All the person would have needed to do was tear out the incantation so that he messed up the spell. Moonflower is always in short supply. It would’ve been easy to predict that he would need to sneak out. So then the person had waited for him… Wait, no, not just any person. A werewolf. The same one that attacked him.

It could only be one of the three he saw in the library. JJ, Emil, and Micky…but which could it be? Yuri doesn’t want it to be JJ. Anyone but JJ.

“Do you have any idea who it could be?” he asks Leo.

Leo shakes his head. “I’m sorry. Who do you think it is?”

“I have no idea.”

“Well, I’d be careful if I were you,” Leo warns. “Oh, and I have another question for you.”

“What is it?”

“What do you do about the full moon?”

Yuri twists his hands together in his lap. “I poison myself with wolfsbane so that I pass out.”

“What the hell?” Leo practically yells. The frog croaks a monstrous baritone in surprise.

“What else was I supposed to do? I can’t very well run around outside.”

Leo stares at him, then understanding shows in his face. “That’s why you were so out of it after the last full moon. Dude, you can’t keep doing that. It’ll kill you eventually.”

“That’s my only option.”

“No, it’s not. I’ll sneak you into our chamber. We can make a potion to disguise you so no one recognizes you before you turn. You need to be running around freely, not drugging yourself with poison.”

Yuri nods. “Okay.” It’s a risky plan, but it wouldn’t be the worst thing ever if he were caught. He’s going to have to come out as a werewolf eventually, if what Leo says is true. Even though he doesn’t want to believe that his parents would do that, the pieces add up far too well. Like it or not, his parents were murderers.

 


	8. Chapter 8

The full moon arrives in no time. Leo and Yuri meet in the potions lab an hour after classes end, then they take the vial of the potion down the hallway to the bathroom. Leo locks the doors and tells Yuri to take the potion.

“What does it do?” Yuri asks.

“It’ll change your appearance,” Leo assures him.

Yuri sniffs the potion. It smells like flowers, definitely the natural scent of werewolf magic. He downs it in one gulp and waits for something to happen. In the mirror, he sees his reflection wobble. He’s getting shorter, his face is getting wider, his hair is growing longer. “What the fuck?” he asks in a high-pitched voice.

Leo can barely contain his laughter. “It’s a gender reversal potion. Don’t worry. It’ll only last until morning.” He hands Yuri a set of girl clothes to change into.

Yuri shoots Leo a glare and walks into the stall to change. He can’t even look at himself as he slips on the skirt and the high heeled shoes. After struggling with the bra for a minute, he tosses it over the bathroom stall and just slips the shirt on. It’s black anyways, so the weird protrusions on his chest aren’t that noticeable. “You are a fucking dickhead,” Yuri says to Leo.

“Guilty,” Leo says with a shrug.

Yuri stares at his reflection for a moment. He’s beautiful. If he’d been born a girl, he definitely would’ve been popular despite his poor magic skills. But he has no interest in being a girl. He’s quite content with his normal form and oh so annoyed at Leo for giving him such a ridiculous potion. “Let’s get to the chamber.”

Leo puts an arm around Yuri. “Sure thing, Julia. If anyone asks, you’re my girlfriend.”

Yuri jabs him in the side, hard. “No way. Just say I’m your cousin or something.”

“Fine,” Leo says, lifting his hands. “My very adorable cousin. I’m sure all my friends will be vying for your attention. Emil and Micky get pretty intimate with women on the first dates, just to warn you.”

Yuri grabs Leo’s arm and wraps it around his shoulder. “Please don’t feed me to the wolves. I’ll be your girlfriend for the night. Whatever.”

Leo laughs and pulls his arm away. “I was only joking. None of my friends would believe it anyway. I am very gay.”

“You are?” Yuri blurts, unable to help himself.

“Yes, we do exist. Oh, wait a moment. I know that look.” Leo’s face splits in a grin. “You too, eh? But let me guess, werewolves aren’t your type.”

Yuri laughs nervously. “Actually, I think werewolves are my type. They kinda have to be now, right?”

“I suppose. It’s not required that you stick to your kind. Just fall in love with whoever you want.”

Yuri thinks about his words as they walk down staircase after staircase until they reach an elaborate black door. A lady takes down their names: Leo de la Iglesia and Julia Martin. (Leo picked the surname at random.)

The doors part, and they walk into a whole other world. A forest with a purple ceiling, fake clouds swimming across it and a fake full moon shining upon the whole setup. The students are standing around in groups talking, awaiting the hour when the night falls. Leo waves a hand to Emil and Micky and drags Yuri over to them. He introduces Julia as his lesbian friend that he met in Allegro’s GSA club. Yuri’s not sure if there is really a Gay-Straight Alliance at Allegro or not, but Emil and Micky seem to buy into it.

“Aw, man. Lesbians are so hot. It’s not fair,” Emil says, giving Yuri a long, appreciative look.

Micky nods his head eagerly. “Yeah. With all the hot girls pairing up together, it leaves, like, nothing for us.”

Leo shakes his head, laughing. “Will you guys just shut up? Where’s JJ anyways?”

Micky shrugs. “He tends to keep to himself on the full moon.”

“That’s true. Maybe we’ll see him later in wolf form.”

Yuri perks up. He didn’t know werewolves could tell each other apart in wolf form. He tugs at Leo’s elbow. “Hey, could we sit down? I wanted to ask you something.”

“Sure.” Leo turns to his friends. “Sorry, but we’ve got a couple things to talk about.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Emil says. “Have fun with your gay talk.”

Leo and Yuri sit down on a flat boulder a little ways into the trees. They can still see some of the people standing by the front, but they’re far enough away that they won’t be overheard. “So, what is it?” Leo asks. “Sorry about Emil and Micky being assholes.”

“It’s not my body, so I don’t care.”

“Well, it still seems annoying to have those goons drooling over you.”

Yuri chuckles. “More amusing than anything else. But anyways, you said something about being able to tell who each other is in wolf form. How does that work?”

Leo tilts his head, his face twisted in amused disbelief. “We may all look similar to you, but all wolves look a bit different. And even if you can’t tell by looks, you can definitely smell the difference.”

“Will they be able to tell it’s me once I change?” Yuri asks.

Leo shakes his head. “Nope. That’s the beauty of a gender potion. You’ll be a female wolf when you transform. Even if they could tell that your scent is familiar, they won’t guess that it’s you. Don’t worry so much about it.”

“A potion that can withstand the werewolf transformation. That must be some pretty powerful magic.”

Leo beams proudly. “It is. Not many werewolves could brew it.”

“You’re very talented.”

“Why thank you. So, are you single? Because pretty boys are totally my type.”

Yuri can’t tell whether he’s joking or not, so he tells the truth. “Single, but I’ve got my eye on someone else. I’m sorry.”

Leo nudges his shoulder. “No need to be sorry. It’s a werewolf though, right? What you said earlier made me think that.”

“Yeah,” Yuri admits. He picks up a strand of the long blond hair and starts twirling it, not sure what else to say.

“Is it that adorable little one I see you with sometimes? With the red bangs?”

“No.” Yuri realizes too late that he should have lied and said yes.

“Oh lord.”

“What?”

“It’s JJ, isn’t it?”

Yuri averts his eyes. He should deny it, but he can’t. “It’s stupid, yeah, but I can’t help how I feel.”

“Not stupid. Just unlikely. JJ comes from a very prominent family. His parents will want him to marry a girl so he can have children. They won’t be happy with adoptions. It’s this weird thing with older werewolf families. They’re very proud of continuing their lineage.”

“Yeah, I know.” Yuri sighs, folding his hands together. He stares up at the sky. The purple is darkening now as the clouds move faster. Would JJ ever defy his parents for love, or was his destiny as certain as the stars in the sky? Yuri laughs to himself. The stars in this particular sky are all fabricated, as uncertain as can be.

When Yuri turns back to Leo, he finds that he has disappeared. So much for keeping him company. The forest is becoming darker and darker. Less people stand around. Everyone seems to be sitting somewhere private, waiting for the moment when the night forces the change.

It happens suddenly and unexpectedly. One moment Yuri is searching the trees for other people; the next he is lying on the stone slab, panting. It only takes a few minutes this time until he’s a full wolf. He sits up on his haunches and shakes his head. Being a wolf feels weird.

Howls sound in the distance, and he sees blurs running through the trees. The time has come. Even if he’d wanted to stay still, he wouldn’t have been able to control. His instincts take over, and he thunders through the forest. He jumps over logs, into piles of leaves, howls at the white orb in the sky.

He forgets that the sky is fake, that the forest is enclosed in a room underground. He feels free and wild, like he can do anything. Running doesn’t tire him; instead it invigorates him. He wants to run more and more. He could’ve run all night. Except he hears the howl that makes his heart jump.

Before he knows it, he’s howling back and running towards the sound. In a thick patch of trees, he finds the wolf whose howl called his name. He patters up to him, sniffs him, arches his back, and lies down before him. The wolf sniffs him in return, then joins him on the ground. They cuddle close, taking in each other’s warmth. The smell is familiar and safe, like home. He likes it very much. Forever would be wonderful with this wolf.

Sleep claims them in its blissful embrace.

 

Yuri awakes on the forest floor, relieved to see that his clothes returned after the transformation. Someone is lying on the ground beside him. He gets closer and the eyes flutter open.

JJ meets his gaze. “Good morning, beautiful,” JJ says sleepily. His jaws part in a yawn.

“Beautiful? Me?” Yuri is stunned by his own high-pitched voice. The moment he saw JJ, he’d forgotten that he was still under the effects of the gender reversal potion. Immediately he feels sick to his stomach. JJ just spent the night with him because he was disguised as a beautiful girl.

“Yes, Yuri.”

“What?!?” Yuri sits straight up.

JJ smiles. “Leo told me about the potion. I know it’s you. Last night, I could smell it was you. I’m glad you responded to my howl.”

“You know about me? That I’m a werewolf now.”

JJ sits up and takes Yuri’s hands in his. “Yuri, I’ve known.”

“What? When did Leo tell you?” Yuri pulls his hands away hesitantly.

“He didn’t.”

If Leo didn’t tell him, then could that mean…? “I have to go,” Yuri says. He stands and runs. No. No. It can’t be. JJ can’t be the one who turned him. This doesn’t make any sense. JJ doesn’t like him, so why was he cuddling with him? Why would JJ turn him if he didn’t want to kill him?

“Wait up!” JJ’s voice comes from behind. “Can’t we just talk about this?”

“No,” Yuri screams. “There’s nothing to talk about. I don’t trust you.”

“Hey.” JJ grabs Yuri’s hands, forcing him to halt. He kisses Yuri’s fingers gently. “I want you to be mine.”

“I’m not a toy that you can just play with,” Yuri spits and yanks his hand out of JJ’s grasp. “Go fuck yourself!”

He runs as fast as he can through the forest and finally comes out to the side by the door. The lady at the front checks him off the list, and he heads to the bathroom where he had agreed to meet Leo afterward. Leo is there with Yuri’s clothes, and he changes back into them without a word. They wait in the bathroom for the effects of the potion to wear off.

“So, did JJ find you last night?” Leo asks.

“I don’t want to talk about it,” Yuri says, turning his head away.

“That bad? He seemed pretty keen to find you when I told him you were there.”

“Why did you tell him?” Yuri asks. “It wasn’t your secret to share.”

“He already knew. He said he was looking around the school for you beforehand, but he couldn’t find you. I think he might have looked for you before the last full moon too. He was late to arrive.”

If he’d known that long, there was no question about it. JJ must be the one who turned Yuri. Was it for revenge like Leo suspects, or something far more sinister?

 


	9. Chapter 9

After Yuri changed back into a boy, he returns to his room to get ready for the volarball match that afternoon. He considers skipping—he really doesn’t want to see JJ—but he can’t let his teammates down. He arrives to the volarball field. His eyes wander over the knot of players, trying to find JJ among them, but he’s nowhere to be seen.

It’s five minutes til the game starts, and JJ still isn’t there. Emil and Micky both say they didn’t see JJ leave the underground chamber. Could he still be there? Why would he purposefully miss a game?

“I saw him getting cozy with that lesbian chick,” Emil comments. “Maybe they’re still at it?”

“No way, man. He wouldn’t miss a game for a chick.”

Coach blows the whistle. “It’s too late now. We’ve got to start.”

The first round goes dreadfully. Yuri can’t focus because he’s so worried about JJ. His aim is so bad that only about have of his serves get hit by the other players. They end the first round with an embarrassingly low score.

Otabek calls them to the side to discuss a strategy before the second round. “We need Leroy. Does anyone know where he is?”

“Probably still in the forest,” Micky says.

“I’ll go look for him,” Leo offers.

“No, we can’t have our best libero missing an entire round. We need to win this round if we have any chance.” Otabek studies the group, then his gaze lands on Yuri. “Plisetsky, you know where the underground chamber is?”

“Sort of.”

“He’ll need a werewolf with him to get in,” Emil says.

Otabek glances over at the crowd. “Take your friend. The small fry. We’ll make the game last as long as we can. Get JJ and bring him back here in time for round three, or else.”

Yuri nods. “I’ll find him.” He runs over to the stands and gets Minami to come down with him. He explains the situation as they rush into the school and down the many flights of stairs to the underground chamber.

Minami explains the situation to the lady who guards the door, and surprisingly, she lets them both into the chamber. Yuri and Minami split up, shouting JJ’s name. Yuri wishes he knew a way to call JJ while he’s not a werewolf. He remembers the howl from the night before and his own response. He tries it now. It doesn’t have the same effect in human form, but it still echoes throughout the forest.

Silence.

More silence.

A howl sounds but he can’t hear it well enough to know if it’s JJ. Yuri tries again, louder this time. His heart soars as a howl breaks the silence. This time he’s sure it’s JJ. He’s races off in that direction, but halfway there he trips on something and falls face-first into the mud.

He curses as he tries to wipe it from his face. Planting his elbows on the ground, he starts to stand, but a foot pushes him back down into the ground. “You should have died,” the voice says. “Your parents killed my uncle. The least you could do was pay with your life, but no, you had to go soaring away into the sky on a broomstick.”

Yuri thrashes on the ground, trying to break loose, but he’s like a cockroach that’s been pinned to the ground. “Please get off me,” he says through tears. He doesn’t even remember when he started to cry. “I didn’t know they were doing it. I’m sorry.”

“Sorry doesn’t bring him back.” A hand grips Yuri’s hair and slams his face back into the mud.

Yuri sputters, spitting mud out of his mouth. The taste is horrid, but it’s nothing compared to the sick feeling in his stomach. “You’re a coward. You won’t even look me in the face.”

“A coward? Me?” The foot pushes Yuri around, and the boy sits on top of Yuri, a knee to his chest and a knife to his throat. Yuri is surprised to find that it isn’t JJ. It’s Minami.

“You? But I was nice to you. I helped you study. We’re friends, aren’t we?”

He shakes his head. “We’ve never been friends. I only started talking to you so I could get close enough to do this.” He pushes the knife against Yuri’s throat.

Hot blood trickles across his neck. Yuri feels as if his heart will burst out of his chest. He tries to think of a spell, something, anything to get him out of this. But before he can do or say anything, his body starts to numb.

Minami smirks. “I’ve always been better at potions than you. This knife is coated in a numbing potion. You’ve no chance of escape.”

“JJ’s here. He will find me.”

Minami pulls an electronic device out of his pocket and hits a button. JJ’s howl echoes through the forest. “He’s not here. I told him that you were waiting for him in the real forest. In that stupid tree you crashed into. He’s waiting for you there. No one is here to save you.”

“But the game. How did you know Otabek would send me? Wait a moment. Otabek’s in on it too?” Yuri gasps, unable to believe it. “But why?”

“Your parents killed his older brother. And the lady guarding the door to this place is my older sister. She won’t let anyone inside to save you, and she made sure that everyone left the chamber before we entered.”

“I bet you feel so smart, but you forgot one thing. I’m a wizard.” Yuri concentrates with all his strength, and the patch of dirt beneath him soars into the air. It’s weak dirt, it can barely hold him, but he knows it’s his only chance. If he can just fly high enough, maybe he can evade Minami.

It’s a stupid plan. There’s no way dirt can hold him. Then he remembers the stone slab that he and Leo sat on the night before. Now that might have some flying power to it. He directs the dirt cloud beneath him, but with he can feel it dissolving beneath him. The rock is beneath him now. He drops, hits it hard, Minami is right behind him, knife raised.

With every ounce of power Yuri has, he gets the rock to soar from the ground. It’s too heavy to go very high, but luckily he doesn’t need to worry about height. He just needs to keep it moving until the numbing potion wears off.

He’s getting tired. His magic definitely isn’t strong enough for this. The rock’s about to crash. Maybe he can land it on Minami’s foot, pin him down like the cock roach he is. He aims it towards the flash of red hair, but then suddenly something collides with the rock and the course changes abruptly. The rock soars up.

Yuri looks beside him to see a faint outline of a person, the kind of outline only a person under the effects of an invisibility potion can have when it starts to wear off.

“It’s Seung-gil,” the low voice beside him says.

“What are you doing here?” Yuri asks in disbelief.

“When you didn’t come to me for help on the full moon, I figured it meant you were coming here. I decided to sneak inside to keep an eye on you. Thing is, sneaking in was really easy. Just had to slip inside invisible with a group of people. But getting out is much harder since they do that process one at a time. I heard the fighting, but it took me a while to find you. I can’t believe you managed to fly on a cloud of dirt.”

Yuri laughs despite himself. “And I thought flying on a wooden board was roughing it.”

“So why is that chicken nugget trying to kill you?” Seung-gil’s floating head asks. The rest of his body is still mostly invisible. (He looks ridiculous.)

“My parents killed his uncle apparently. But I had no idea about it, so I shouldn’t be punished, should I?”

“Of course not. Parents’ mistakes shouldn’t be passed down to their children. That being said, let’s get out of here. I don’t really want to add murder to my list either.” Seung-gil redirects the stone slab to the huge black doors, accelerating as they get closer and closer. The rock slams the doors open, and they soar out into the hallway. “Should we go straight to the headmaster’s office?”

“No, everyone will be at the game.” Yuri suddenly remembers Otabek’s threat. “Head to the forest. We need to get JJ to play in the game. Otherwise Otabek will spread the ridiculous rumor that you and I are screwing each other.”

Seung-gil chuckles. “Wow. That’s what he thinks?”

“Why is that so funny to you?”

“Because Otabek and I bonded over how we’re both asexual.”

“But he’s dating Mila.”

“That’s where we’re different. He’s got a romantic side. I don’t. And what about you? Has becoming a werewolf awakened your sexual side?”

Yuri nudges his shoulder. “Oh, hush.”

“Careful, I’m the one driving this thing.”

“I think I might be in love with JJ,” Yuri admits quietly. But of course Seung-gil, with his sharp hearing, still manages to catch the words.

“Well, I’ll be. I didn’t see that one coming. How does he feel about you?”

“He said he wants me to be his. I think he thought he was being romantic, but I was pretty mad at him at the time because I thought he was the one who bit me and anyways it’s a long story.”

“I hope things work out for you two. You deserve it after this ordeal with Minami and Otabek.”

“Thanks.”

 

Yuri spots JJ sitting on the tree, and they pick him up. JJ is hesitant to sit on the rock slab with them, but he caves in whenever Yuri asks him to trust him. They fly to the volarball court. From the scoreboard, they can tell that Allegro won the second round. Unfortunately, they’re already halfway through the third round and Allegro is far behind.

“We have to win this,” Yuri tells JJ.

“I can win if I have you on the court.”

They dismount from the rock, and Yuri and JJ go up to the coach. They have to wait a few minutes before the coach can swap out the players. Finally, JJ and Yuri stand on the same court again. They nod to each other and take their positions.

Yuri soon discovers that his dirt flying ability extends to the terrain on the volarball court. He knows that he won’t have this ability for long since Leo said his wizard powers would disappear for good in another month, so he takes advantage of it while he can. The adrenaline and relief that comes from narrowly escaping death fuel him to perform better than he ever has during practice. JJ also seems to be filled with an energy that puts more power into his spikes.

They slaughter the other team and win the game, earning them a spot in the regional tournament. Emil and Micky lift Yuri up into the air while Otabek and Leo lift JJ. They are the MVPs of the game, and no one can deny that.

Once the cheering has settled down, Yuri and Seung-gil approach Headmaster Yakov and tell him about all that happened with Minami, Otabek, and Minami’s sister. The headmaster agrees to launch an official investigation and warns them to be careful in the meantime.

 

Finally, Yuri gets the chance to be with JJ alone. They skip the drinking party Emil is having in his room in order to stay in JJ’s room and talk. Yuri tells him the whole story of how he got turned, how Otabek and Minami had teamed up to take him down, and how Seung-gil had literally jumped to the rescue.

“I can’t believe I fell for his stupid message. Since you guys are friends, I completely believed him.” JJ runs a hand over his face. “I could’ve been there to help you…”

“You’ll be there next time,” Yuri says, squeezing his hand tightly. “So, it’s your turn. When did you figure out I was a werewolf?”

A blush spreads across JJ’s cheeks. “It’s actually kind of hard to explain. Um, it was that time when you flew me on the magic carpet and we sat in the tree together for hours. Right about the first time our legs brushed together, you emitted these, well, werewolf pheromones. It’s hard to describe. It’s a smell. A good smell. But like only the person it’s directed at would be able to smell it, if that makes sense.”

“I think so,” Yuri says. “I read something about that in one of the werewolf books Seung-gil gave me. But I didn’t think I liked you yet then…”

“Well, you must have and just not been aware of it yet. I definitely got the signal. I kind of thought that meant we were together. So the next day I broke up with Isabella, and I kept trying to get close to you whenever we spent time together. Especially that night when you stayed in my room. I kissed you good night, and you told me to kiss you again.”

“I thought that was a dream!” Yuri exclaims, mortified. “That’s when I realized that I liked you.”

JJ chuckles. “Well, I’m glad that this is mutual. We should have talked about it sooner, but I thought that we didn’t need to. You seemed to be returning my feelings. We even cuddled together as wolves. That’s one of the most romantic things werewolves can do together.”

“I never took you for such a romantic.” He nudges JJ’s shoulder.

JJ plants a delicate kiss on Yuri’s cheek. “I’ve only felt romantic towards you. Isabella was all about sex and status. But you’ve always made me feel something. Also, your female form is very attractive too. We should have Leo brew up that potion for you more often.”

“I’m not going to become a girl for you.” Yuri sticks out his tongue.

“Not all the time, of course. I like you just as you are. But it could be fun sometimes.” He hugs Yuri tightly. “Maybe I could try it too.”

Yuri snorts. “You’d make a hideous girl. Besides, unlike you, I am only attracted to the male form.”

“Suit yourself. I just thought it would be fun to be lesbians together.”

“Remind me why I like you.”

JJ leans close into Yuri’s face, smiles, and then gives him a kiss that makes him melt. “I think it’s because I’m…oh, what did you say…perfect, was it?”

“Shut up.” Yuri nudges his shoulder playfully. “So, anyways, are we going to keep this a secret or are we going to tell people?”

“If it’s okay with you, I’d rather tell people. I’m tired of pretending to be someone I’m not just to fit on the path that is expected of me. My parents can handle this. Besides, I’ve got a lot of siblings who can carry on the Leroy bloodline or whatever.”

“It’s okay with me,” Yuri says softly. He’s secretly thrilled. He can get this first coming out done quickly. Then will come the true ordeal: coming out as a werewolf.

They cuddle together on the bed, akin to their werewolf cuddles from the night before. There’s no telling what tomorrow will bring or what’ll happen to Minami and Otabek, but Yuri is glad to have someone who loves him. And even though his parents did turn out to be killers, he’s happy to say that he didn’t have to resort to killing to save himself. Now more than ever, he sees who his true friends are: JJ, Leo, and Seung-gil. He would add Mila to that list, but he’s pretty sure she’ll never talk to him again once he gets her boyfriend arrested.

“Let’s go flying every day this month,” JJ says. “We’ve got to take advantage of this power while you’ve still got it.”

Yuri laughs. “I’ll fly you anywhere, JJ. To Agrabah and back. And yes, I did look up Aladdin and watch it. Thank you for the recommendation.”

“You are the cutest werewolf, you know that?” JJ stares at him in awe.

“And you say too many corny things. Come on. Let’s celebrate today’s victory.”

 


End file.
